Tag Archives: drunk driving victim

Any time alcohol is involved in a celebration, there’s the potential for a high number of alcohol-related traffic deaths. Being that Cinco de Mayo is on a Saturday this year, drinking violations jump more than 75% if it falls on the weekend, compared to 17% on a weekday.

If you are planning on going out and celebrating, be sure to have a designated driver or utilize a ca, Uber or Lyft. Karen Mertes has had her life dramatically affected by a drunk driver – don’t put some else’s life in danger because of negligence.

“As my life hung in the balance after a tragic car accident caused by a drunk driver, I promised to spend the rest of my life helping others if I were to survive. After my four year long litigation battle, my attorney husband and I decided to write, “Plaintiff 101” to help other personal injury victims. Being involved in a life-changing car accident is devastating. You deserve to get your life back to normal, yet the justice system is not an easy one to navigate. That’s what this book is for. To give you inside information and what your lawyer will want you to know in order to have a wining case.

Despite sustaining a traumatic brain injury from my accident, I am the founder and president of Fulfill Your Destiny, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to helping people whose careers have been altered by injury or other unforeseen circumstances. Inspiring stories of people who have been helped can be found at www.fulfillyourdestiny.org under the Who We’ve Helped tab.

The proceeds from the sale of this book are directly donated to Fulfill Your Destiny. We hope you find the information contained within these pages of our book very insightful. Please know that your donation for this book is used to help others through Fulfill Your Destiny.”

Getting hit by a drunk driver can be one of the scariest moments of your life, but it is important to remember the steps to take after an accident has happened. If you are conscious and able to get yourself to a safe place after the accident, proceed to take these steps—

1. Call the Police so that the accident is documented.

Check on all the other parties involved, including drivers, passengers, and pedestrians, to make sure no one is hurt. Call 911 if anyone may be injured.

2. Cooperate with the Responding Officers.

3. Collect as much Information and Evidence from the scene as possible.

If you have a smartphone with a camera, snap some photos of the accident scene. They’ll come in handy during the claim process. Try to write down as much info as possible in the accident aftermath, including:

Driver and passenger names

License plate numbers

Insurance info

Makes and models of all vehicles involved

Contact info for any eyewitnesses

Location of the accident

The name and badge number of any responding police officers

4. Seek Medical treatment as soon as possible.

5. Grab a Copy of Plaintiff 101

Wanting to read on the go, on your phone, computer or tablet? You can grab a copy of Plaintiff 101on Kindle today!

#1 Amazon Best Seller! As seen on Daytime TV, ABC & Bay News 9.
As my life hung in the balance after a tragic car accident caused by a drunk driver, I promised to spend the rest of my life helping others if I were to survive. Despite sustaining a traumatic brain injury, I am the founder and president of Fulfill Your Destiny, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to helping people whose careers have been altered by injury or other unforeseen circumstances. This book is to help other personal injury survivors contemplating litigation, or already involved in litigation. You should be able to navigate these troubled waters ever so slightly easier because of our experience and advice. We’re hopeful that plaintiffs’ attorneys will see the benefit of providing this book as a teaching tool to their clients so as a team you can win your case!

Thinking about joining Karen Mertes for the 2018 Fulfill You Destiny Chari-Tea event? Check out this interview to find out her reason WHY —

That Business Show welcomed Karen Mertes, an honorably retired United States Air Force Lieutenant Colonel with Fulfill Your Destiny. Karen has an amazing story. She suffered a massive car accident involving a drunk driver. Near death and with a massive brain injury, she vowed to help others if she survived, and that’s how Fulfill Your Destiny was created.

Fulfill Your Destiny is dedicated to helping others in our community become successful, or helping them out in order to give them the tools to live a better and happier life. Whether its helping a young child with school or giving a foster child their own car, Fulfill Your Destiny does some real good for the Tampa Bay community.

Every day in America, another 29 people die as a result of drunk driving crashes. That’s one person every 50 minutes. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) picked up Karen Mertes’ story of triumph late last year and shared it with the world.

Here is an excerpt from the MADD write-up on Karen Mertes:

“In every situation we have a choice, to stay a victim or become victorious despite all odds. I chose to be better, not bitter.” The driver that made the choice to drink and drive and injured Karen, continued to make choices that harmed him. Before the Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) results came back, he fled the state. The news was heart breaking. As she continued to face new challenges head-on and find ways to embrace her TBI, the person that caused so much pain and suffering chose to flee his problems and not be accountable for his actions.”

When it comes to drinking, driving should never be an option. Before you get behind the wheel this NYE after a few drinks think again. It is a commonly known fact that there are more alcohol related car accidents on New Year’s Eve than most other nights. Compared to the average weekend night, the 12-hour window between 6 p.m. on Dec. 31 and 6 a.m. on Jan. 1 tends to have about 71% more crashes where alcohol or drugs are listed as a contributing factor.

With an average of 140 deaths (based on statistics from 2002 to 2008), New Year’s Day is the second most deadly day for drivers

January 1st is the day of the year with the highest percent of deaths related to alcohol from 2008-12

Number of people killed in drunk driving crashes in New Year’s 2013: 140

When it comes to drinking, driving should never be an option. Before you get behind the wheel this holiday season after a few drinks and think you have some hacks to beat a breathalyzer test – think again. Here are three debunked myths on how to beat a breathalyzer test —

Myth: When it comes to penalties, it’s better to not submit to a breathalyzer

Fact: Most states have what’s called an ‘Implied Consent’ law. That means by accepting a drivers license in your state, you agree to submit to a breath, blood, or urine test if a police officer suspects you of drinking and driving. If you refuse to submit to the breathalyzer, you could receive an additional charge and still lose your drivers license or be required to install an ignition interlock device.

Myth: Hyperventilating before you submit to a breathalyzer will affect your results and give you a lower blood alcohol concentration (BAC)

Fact: It’s impossible to alter the reading of a breathalyzer by breathing in a different way, just like hyperventilating before you breath into an ignition interlock will affect whether you pass or fail.

Myth: After I sleep off the alcohol, I’ll be OK to drive

Fact: If you drink approximately 5 drinks all in a row and you fall asleep for 5 hours, when you wake up you would most likely still blow over the legal limit on a breathalyzer. Why? You’d have to wait 10 hours to fully metabolize 5 alcohol drinks, so going to sleep is no guarantee you won’t be drunk when you wake up.

As we’re gearing up for the holiday season, parties are being held and drinks are being poured. Resist the urge to drive home after having “just a few” this holiday season. Don’t put your life and the lives of others in your hands by getting behind the wheel.

Impairment is not reliant upon the type of alcohol consumed, rather the number of drinks over a certain period of time. Despite myths and misconceptions, coffee, a cold shower, or exercise will not make a person more sober; only time will.

On average, a drunk driver will drive 80 times under the influence before their first arrest.

Every 51 minutes in America, someone is killed in a drunk driving crash. That equates to 27 people every day. Offer to be your parents’ designated driver to ensure that everybody gets home safe. Sign up for Parents Ride Shotty.

For drivers under 21, the U.S. has a No Tolerance policy that does not allow any alcohol to be in the blood system while behind the wheel. The consequences could include expensive fines, loss of license or jail.

Someone is injured in a drunk driving incident every 120 seconds.

In 2011, 9,878 people were victims of drunk drivers.

Between 50 to 75% of the people who have had their licenses revoked due to driving under the influence drive illegally without their license.

Traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for teens, and roughly 1/3 of these accidents involve alcohol or another substance.

Since the early 1980s, alcohol-related traffic deaths per population have been cut in half with the greatest proportional declines among persons 16-20 years old.

In 2010, of the fatalities among children ages 14 and younger, 17 percent occurred in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes.

Kids and teens who get involved with alcohol at a young age are 7 times more likely to be involved in an alcohol-related crash in their lives.

For those who are interested in owning Amazon’sBest Seller,“Plaintiff 101” as a valuable resource: